


A Pride of Lion Cubs

by InannaOfTheMoon



Series: Nature's Way [1]
Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Alternate Universe - Siblings, Comfort, Don’t copy to another site, Finding home, Fluff, Found Families, Gen, introspective
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-11
Updated: 2019-03-11
Packaged: 2019-11-15 01:58:45
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,571
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18064406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InannaOfTheMoon/pseuds/InannaOfTheMoon
Summary: He looked at her face again, this time really paying attention - the large and dark brown eyes, the painted, curved brows, the dark sleek hair, the golden skin. Her nose, round on its tip, the shape of her lips; the chiseled, proud jaw like a lioness ready for battle. He had seen all of that before, in a different context.[AU where Amaro is Olivia's brother instead of Simon - W/ Illustrations]





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Sibling AU inspired by my realization / my own tag "Amaro is More Olivia's Brother Than Fucking Simon, Pass It Forward" (https://bit.ly/2J4Tl7p)
> 
> Cover art made by me.

 

* * *

  _“Close your eyes,  
Just feel and realize:_  
_It is real and not a dream_  
_I'm in you, and you're in me ”_  
(“Beyond the Invisible” - Enigma) 

* * *

 

As he walked towards the coffee shop, he was uneasy and unsure, and he absolutely hated feeling like that. Maria has said someone wanted to talk to her, some alleged old friend of his. That smelled like a setup, so he decided checking it out with his own eyes who the hell was that. 

It was one thing for people wanting to set him up for being a cop, but it was an entirely different thing if they were targeting his wife.   

He entered the cozy, dim-lit place and he had no trouble at finding the woman he was looking for. She was facing the other side, but he knew it was her because she was alone and Maria had said she had dark brown hair falling down a little past her shoulders. He got to her booth, in time to see her putting down the cup of tea she was drinking. 

He quickly sat in front of her, ready to unleash his well-known wild temper on her and demand some answers. 

“I’m sorry Maria couldn’t make it, but I just had to come and see this old friend of mine…”, he started, anger tainting his voice, but he was out of words at the moment he saw her surprised face. 

“Oh, I’m sorry, this is so embarrassing…!”, she said, putting her hands up. She was definitely not expecting he would be the one showing up. “I-I thought you were somebody else, I’m very sorry for wasting your time....” 

Confused, he was out of words for a moment, but then he remembered the reason why he was there. 

“You aren't wasting my time, Detective, but I’d like to know why you told my wife to meet you here.” 

“What are you talking about?”, she said, trying to buy some time. She probably wasn’t expecting him to recognize her, either. 

“Everyone in the force knows who you are, Detective Benson. Now answer my question.” 

Instead of giving him what he wanted to know, she just stared at him as if she was seeing the Ghost of Christmas Past.  
  
“What?”, he asked, impatience harsh in his voice like a desert storm in the making. 

“Nothing. This was a mistake.”, she said, trying to get up, but he held her hand so she would stay sit in place. 

“Come on, Benson. I’m not stupid. What do you want with my wife? Just tell me what this is all about.” 

She held her stare, now even looking a bit frightened. His own expression of anger turned into doubt. 

“Have we ever met…?” 

“No, I thought you were somebody else.”, she repeated, quickly getting up and walking away, leaving him with a major interrogation in his eyes. 

 _What in the hell was that…?_ , he asked himself, seeing her leave the coffee shop. That was strange. Why in the heck a well-known cop from Manhattan SVU would look for his partner? Was he under investigation, maybe some false report on him?  
  
That still wouldn’t fit. 

If she was as good as her reputation claimed she was, she wouldn’t commit such a rookie mistake in an investigation. She said she didn’t know him, that that was a mistake, but she forgot that he was a cop, too. He knew when someone was lying to him. Not that it would require exceptional cop skills to see that - he wondered how she could be claimed to be a good cop, and at the same time be such a terrible liar. 

Something was off and he would find out what was it.  
 

* * *

  
Olivia climbed the stairs of her building, thinking about what she had done the night before. She regretted it with every fiber of her being. 

She had pulled his record before going after him - just starting at the narcotics, mostly working behind the desk, sometimes going out to act on the streets. Short-tempered, but nothing bad in his file. Yet. It was only a matter of time. 

 _It runs in the family,_ she thought with sarcasm as she walked through her hallway and took her keys out. 

“Detective Benson!”, she heard him call out of nowhere, making her reach for her gun as she jumped back. It was Detective Amaro. She didn’t ask how he knew where she lived. 

“Are you trying to get yourself shot?” 

“I’d like to remind you that you’re the one who owe me some answers, Detective.” 

“I’ve got nothing to say to you.” 

Amaro’s expression was one of irritation, but it soon melted a little. He still acted in a defensive manner, nonetheless. He walked towards her. 

“I know why you look familiar.” 

“You were the one who said everyone in the force knows me.” she replied with stormy insolence. 

“Don’t test my patience, Benson. I meant I know you from _somewhere else_.”, he replied, his last sentence sounding less harsh then the first as he looked at her, doubt on his face. He took an old-looking piece of paper from his pocket and held it towards her. 

She stared at him, unsure. Olivia picked the piece of paper - a small newspaper clipping - and looked at it. 

It was an old picture of her in her twenties, under the title “Scholar of the Month”; below, there was her name and a praise to her academic achievements in college so far. She swallowed, feeling like she had rocks going down her throat. 

“Where the hell did you get this…?”, Olivia asked, once more looking at him with something that was too alike to fear. 

“In my father’s old stuff.” 

Amaro saw the Ghost-of-Christmas-Past type of look dwelling in her dark eyes again. 

“Come in.”, she simply told him as she turned and opened her door, letting him go in first. As soon as they were inside the apartment and the door was closed, she asked, “Where is your father now?” 

He paced a little around like a caged lion, his hands on his hips in a worried and nervous manner, until he turned to her. 

“Bastard is dead. Ten years ago.” 

“So, why did he have this?”, she waved the clipping towards him. 

“I don’t know, and neither did my mom, that’s why we kept it. It didn’t make any sense.”, Amaro’s face held an expression Olivia couldn’t tell what it meant. It seemed something between doubt, fear and anger. She was not sure. 

“How you didn’t recognize me before, then? If your father had it all this time, why only now?” 

He sighed, rubbing his face and looking at the clipping in her hand, not at her. 

“I haven’t seen that in like, fifteen years. I knew who you were before, for you work as a cop. But seeing you in person yesterday… I don’t know. It kinda… made me remember.” 

There was a moment of silence. 

She wanted to ask if he had a picture of his father on him, but the little he had revealed already showed he wouldn’t have it in his wallet or anything. She decided to give it a shot, nonetheless. 

“Do you have a picture of him?” 

“Of my father? Hell, no.”, he answered what she was already expecting to hear. “Why?” 

“I wanted to see his face.” 

Amaro squinted at her, confused. 

“Why would you want to see him?” 

He saw Olivia sighing in what he identified as distress, and he watched as she hesitated, looking down. When she turned her eyes back to him, they were red as if she was making a wild effort not to cry. 

What the hell was going on? 

“Benson...? Why would you want to see my father’s face?” 

“Because he raped my mom.” she finally answered, her reply hitting him like a pile of bricks on his head. 

“My father...?” at first, his question had dashes of disbelief. But he was cop after all. And he soon started to connect the dots, realization falling upon his face.  
  
He looked at her face again, this time really paying attention - the large and dark brown eyes, the painted, curved brows, the dark sleek hair, the golden skin. Her nose, round on its tip, the shape of her lips; the chiseled, proud jaw like a lioness ready for battle.  
  
He had seen all of that before, in a different context. He had seen all of those features before, on his father’s face. 

“I am his daughter.”, Olivia revealed, at the same time his brain placed together all the things he was seeing. His eyes were full of dismay when he looked at her brown eyes, now realizing, so alike to his’. 

“I… I wish I could say that no, no way this is possible; that he was a normal guy who loved my mom and loved me. But he didn’t. He was an abusive son of a bitch. So, I can’t say I’m... I can’t say I’m really surprised.” he told her, an anger in his eyes that Olivia knew was not directed at her. He then looked at her, this time with sadness on his expression. “I-I’m… so sorry. I’m so sorry he did this to your mother... How did you discover we are related?” 

“I ran my DNA through kinship analysis.” 

“You wanted to see if he had other victims. Or a record.” 

“Yes. But I found you instead.” she replied. “You are my brother.” 

Hearing that word out loud made it sound so weird. He had been an only child his entire life up to that moment, and now he was learning he had a half older sister, who also happened to be a decorated cop in the force. 

That was _insane_. 

“I think I need a drink.”, he joked nervously, rubbing his forehead. 

“I have wine and bourbon.”, Olivia offered, looking as lost as he was, and also probably needing a drink herself with the rollercoaster of a night that one was already being. 

“Whatever you have, really.” 

They sat down in her living room, in silence, each holding their doses. Amaro slowly spinned the glass in his hands, looking down inside it as if he would find all the answers he needed in there. 

“I always wanted a sister.”

“What?” 

He looked at her, the sketch of a smile on his lips. 

“I’ve always wanted a sister.” he repeated. “Not a brother, a sister.” 

“That’s… unusual.”, she said. “How does it feel?” 

“Fucking surreal.” 

She laughed in a nervous manner, not expecting him to be so sincere. 

“It really is, isn’t it.” she was not really making a question. 

“So… tell me, what happened... to your mother?” 

Olivia took a long breath before speaking. 

“She was attacked in the vicinity of the college she attended, one night. She chose to have me, but let’s say that had consequences.” 

“What do you mean?” 

He looked at her. Olivia was sitting next to him on the sofa, half turned  with one of her legs tucked underneath her. She wasn’t looking at him, and his sharp perception could read the distress she probably carried everywhere with her, simply for existing. 

“She had a drinking problem. Sometimes…” Olivia hesitated. “sometimes she was abusive, or would beat me because she was so out of herself. She died years ago, falling head first from a flight of stairs because she was drunk.” 

Sadness once more tainted his brown eyes. 

“I’m really sorry, Benson... For your mother, for all the suffering my father has caused in your lives.” 

Liv smiled sadly at him, touched. 

“Don’t be. It was your father’s fault, not yours.”, she said. “What was it like, for you? 

It was his turn to change his expression into a frown, even clenching his jaw a little. 

“He used to beat the crap out of my mom, as he made me watch him do it. Because he was angry. Because he was jealous of her talking to the guy at the grocery store, because he felt disrespected.” he said, trying to prevent anger from reaching his words, but not really able to. “He would hit me, too. At first because I was an easy target, but then I grew up a bit and actively tried to draw his attention to me instead of my mom.” 

Olivia watched him as he vented, not really knowing what to say. She was trained to talk to, and used to deal with victims of domestic abuse, but that time it was different. She was hearing first hand how the bastard who assaulted her mother would also repeatedly attack Amaro and his mother. The pattern was evident - the man had many issues with women and vulnerable people around him. 

She leaned forward and gripped his shoulder. 

“Like you said, bastard is dead.” she usually wasn’t a vengeful person, but sometimes outrage was way too heavy to keep carrying inside her. She looked straight into Amaro’s eyes, her dark-clouded storm against his, certainty imbued in her words. “He won’t hurt you or your mother or anyone else, ever again.” 

Amaro looked back at her, eyes burning with all the hurt he went through years before, coming back at full force. And now, Olivia’s story was added to that hurt. There was no way he wouldn’t look at it as if it was part of his own story, from that day on.  
  
How could one single man's miserable existence leave a trail of sorrow and destruction so massive behind him? How could he destroy Amaro and his mother in their daily lives with his presence, but also destroy another woman’s life by just crossing her path once - and by extension, devastating Olivia’s life without ever meeting her? 

Amaro placed his hand over hers on his shoulder, and gave it a tender squeeze, acknowledging the pain she felt, but also her support. Their dark, stormy eyes poured as they couldn’t keep the tears back. 

They were headstrong and short-tempered and sometimes, way too full of anger when witnessing injustices, but they weren’t more than defenseless cubs at that moment, vulnerable against their own past, their own history. It was Olivia who broke the silence, with an also broken voice. 

“At least... It’s nice to know that I have a fellow officer like you as a brother.” 

“It runs in the family, it seems.” He smiled a little, wiping a tear rolling down his face. “It’s… kind of insane, now that I notice... you know. The similarities.” 

“Between me and him…?” Olivia asked, not really thrilled, also wiping her own tears. 

“Between me and you.” he corrected. “Our professions, our features. Our tempers.” 

“Seems like my reputation really precedes me.”, she said, a dash of amusement in her voice replacing the sadness from before. 

“I’ve heard you take perps out of the street like no one else in New York. If I got that gene like you, I’d be honored.” 

Olivia felt her chest fill up with a strange, warm feeling. That was a brand-new emotion to her - was that what it felt like, being looked up by someone, more specifically, by her _younger brother?_ The thought invaded her mind, not without surprise and a hint of happiness following it. 

“I… I try my best to be a good cop.”, it was all she was able to answer. Amaro noticed the flush on her cheeks and gave a small side smile to her. 

“Look, Benson…” 

“Please, call me Olivia.” 

“Then, I’m Nick.” 

“Fair enough, Nick.” she nodded, as if they were setting an agreement, tension and gloominess starting to melt away. “What were you going to say?” 

“That we’ve started off on the wrong foot.”, he concluded. 

“We did, and that’s my fault.” she admitted. “I’m sorry for going after your wife like that. I didn’t mean to scare you.” 

“That’s okay. I’m not sure if my reaction in your place would have been different, to be honest.” 

“It runs in the family, it seems.” she repeated what he said before, humor in her voice. He chuckled. 

“Man… that’s _so insane_.” Amaro said, more to himself than to Olivia as he leaned back against the sofa, feeling his tension cease a little as well. The thought was inevitable to him. “Do you think we would have got along if we had met as kids…?” 

“I’d probably babysit you.” she laughed a little. “I’m almost seven years older than you, kiddo.” 

“Really?” Amaro said, looking at her a bit surprised. “You look younger.” 

“Don’t flatter me.”  
  
“I mean it.” he said. “Maybe I’d go for you to kick Billy Fernandez’s ass, he used to bully me when I was seven, instead of bugging my best friend back then to do so.” 

“A feisty kid like you wouldn’t kick his ass back?” 

“He was like, five years older.” 

“Oh, that changes everything, then.” she paused for a moment as if she was thinking. “I’d probably just scare the brat away, telling him to pick someone his own size.” 

“I wish we had time machines, that would be something.” 

Olivia laughed, agreeing with him. 

She imagined a little, seven-year-old version of Nick next to a fourteen-year old version herself. She wasn’t a saint at that age, but she had always liked kids. She thought that having a little kitten of a brother tagging along her everywhere would be as annoying to a teenage girl, as it would be cute. 

And for a moment, Amaro imagined how it would be, having a teen sister to be obnoxious with, and how it would be like to count on someone like her to stay in with him if his mom had to go somewhere, or as he said, defending him against the big boys that picked on him. That was a strange thing to think of considering they had barely met, but it was a nice thought nonetheless. 

With that in mind, they looked at each other once more, moving together as if in sync. 

A new kind of feeling had just born inside them. They couldn’t name it yet, but it was as real as the soft smile they exchanged.


	2. Chapter 2

In the last couple of days, Amaro’s thoughts were filled with a blend of confusion and anticipation, whirlwinding inside his mind. He remembered all the times when he was a kid, when he would tell his mother he wanted a sibling - a sister, specifically -, almost as if he somehow knew he already had one out there. He knew it was a coincidence, but it still confused him a lot.

He thought of how in the hell he would tell his mom about Olivia.

Should he even tell her at all? Or just leave it be? After all, Olivia was not related to her, she was the daughter of the man who made her life a living hell for years, until she was able to walk away. He did tell Maria, however, as soon as he got home on that night he had confronted Olivia. She was as taken aback as he was with the revelation.

He was thinking a lot about all of it. How could they work as siblings? He had little to no practice on the subject, just like her.

All day he worked through his papers and documents, no street duty for him that afternoon and he was glad for that for the first time, for his attention was divided. He was making sure to double check everything exactly for that reason. He couldn't afford any mistakes.

It had been two days since Olivia had told him she was his half sister, and his head would go back in time to that night every minute. He was scared and happy and excited and sad, all at once. All the possibilities, the lost ones from the past and the promising future ones, were spinning like a whirlwind inside his heart - his emotions, like leaves being carried by that gale. He really wasn’t one to be nostalgic all the time and keep looking back, but it was being hard not to, adding in those possibilities in the mix.

It was around the end of his shift when he got a text from her - they had decided to exchange numbers to keep in touch. “ _I have an idea. Meet me after work”, s_ he wrote, followed by an address. He was intrigued, but he decided to do it without making questions.

A bit later, there he was in front of a burger joint. Olivia showed up five minutes after he did, walking down the street in a black coat and red cheeks with the cold night’s air.

“Hey there.”, she greeted.

“Hey, Olivia.” he was unsure on what to do.

“I thought it was a bit risky calling you here, since I don't know anything about you. You could be vegetarian or something, but I decided to take a shot.”, she said.

He could see she was nervous, but was trying to act as normally as she could. He smiled a little.

“No, you got it right. Burgers are my jam.”

She replied with a little smile on her, too.

“Same here. Good start, I think.”

Going inside the place, he saw it wasn’t a fancy joint or anything, just a regular burger place. They picked a booth and ordered what they wanted.

“So, what was the idea you mentioned in your text?”, he asked.

“Pretty much this.” she gestured their surroundings with a small move of her hand. “Hanging out in places I liked to go as a kid. Starting on familiar grounds. I got the idea from a… previous situation I had.”

He looked at her, intrigued by her vague words. She didn’t want to mention right away that she had a girlfriend, but then she thought that maybe cutting to the chase would be the best in that situation - seeing how he would react to that would probably dictate how she would want to carry things from that moment on.  

“I, hm... started dating a friend of mine last year. I was unsure on how to deal with it because we were friends for years before, but mostly because she’s a woman.”

“Oh… I see. That makes a lot of sense, then. Did you like to come here as a kid?”

Olivia’s chest was filled with warm happiness and relief by his casual response. She took it as a very good sign as she carried on with the conversation.

“Unfortunately, the place I liked to go back in the day turned into an office building like, twenty years ago.”, she chuckled. “But this one is close enough. I liked to go there with the few friends I had, just to hang out and have a good time. I thought that… maybe you would like that, too.”

Nick thought that was really nice of her, trying to share some of her memories like that. Adorable, even. Olivia saw when a smile filled his expression.

“I think it’s a great idea, really. I’d love to take you through some of my favorite places growing up, too.” he replied. “That would be awesome.”

That brand-new emotion moved inside her chest, making circles around her heart like a fuzzy kitten, making it feel lighter and brighter in a way that was totally new to her. She still couldn’t name that emotion, but she already loved the feeling of it.

They were briefly interrupted by the person bringing their food - classic cheeseburgers, french fries and soda. They started eating, silence filling the space around them in a pleasant, strangely cozy manner.

“So, I need to make the important questions here”, Nick started, picking another fry from his little basket. “you’re ten years old, right? Strawberry or chocolate ice cream?”

Olivia chuckled, surprised in a positive way by the sudden quizz.

“Strawberry.”

“Cap’n Crunch or Cocoa Puffs?”

“Oh, definitely Cap’n Crunch.”

“ _Dukes of Hazzard_ or _Little House on the Prairie_?

“Dukes.”

“ _Looney Tunes_ or _Hanna-Barbera_ ?”   
  
He saw her laugh openly for the first time since they met.

“Come on, that one is vital.” he said, joining her in her laughter.

“That’s unfair, I can’t just pick between Bugs Bunny and Jonny Quest like that.”

Nick sat back, enjoying the moment with a playful smirk on.

“That’s a really good point.” he said, and then placed his elbows on the table, leaning against it as he added. “So, tell me more about you. How is it to be one of the most badass cops in the force right now?”

“Oh, come on, kiddo.”, she laughed, visibly embarrassed. “Don't stretch it!”

It was the second time she would call him like that. In other occasions that word was used on him, it always came with condescending, hostile undertones. But that time it was different - it sounded light and affectionate, and he caught himself actually liking it with Olivia as the one saying it so naturally.

She then replied, telling him about her academic life, most of all. Graduating, going to the academy, joining the SVU around eight years before. He had no idea how in the hell she had endured such a division for so long. Putting drug dealers and mob gangs out of the streets was bad and violent and often ugly - especially if people had to infiltrate as undercover for months, or even years -, but he couldn't imagine how would that be, working daily with the type of investigations Olivia and her squad had to.

It wasn't a lie that everyone in the force had at least heard about her, and he always thought she definitely seemed like a great detective. However, seeing her in person and learning more about her, little by little made the fearless lioness-like hero that was the face of the Manhattan SVU look more like the human being she actually was. It was an interesting shift in his perception.

When Olivia finished, she asked the same to Amaro.

“I was just the regular boy, getting by at school until I started taking it more seriously, so I would be able to get into the academy later. And after that, not so different from you. Street cop, homicide detective; and now, narcotics.”

“That's quite the list, actually.”

“Still in progress.”

She smiled.

“It always is, I guess. You’ve got a good start already.”

It was his turn to feel his face burn a little. It was good to know he was doing it right - her opinion as a senior detective counted a lot to him. But maybe, he was also counting on her opinion as his older sister already, which was something odd to feel at that point where things were still so new - but it was also inevitable not to think like that.

 

* * *

  
  
“ _Are you serious??_ ”, Casey said, her spring-colored eyes going wide with shock.

“It’s like my life suddenly became some weird telenovela.”, Olivia replied by her side.

Worry dwelled in Casey’s expression, as Olivia caressed her hair.

“How are you about this, I mean… _you have a half-brother._ On your father’s side.”

“It is weird, I’m not gonna lie.” she said. “But it’s not being as bad as I was expecting it to be…?”, she said.

After the dinner with Nick, Casey had called over, her current busy schedule finally allowing her some time to give Olivia proper attention. Usually, Liv would just hang out, but even that wasn’t being possible lately.

Disclosing their relationship the previous year ended up with the ADA having to move to another division, as a safety measurement by their bosses. It was not the end of the world as they thought it would be at first - it was actually even better not having to worry all the time about conflict of interests, even if subconsciously. And they did have Alex Cabot back, which was always a plus.

On the other hand, now with Casey somewhere else dealing with white-collar crimes, they were seeing each other a bit less even with the change being for the best. It was nothing they couldn’t deal with, and even being a bit more escarce now, Olivia was always happy finding herself laying in bed between her favorite big, red creatures, both of them being all cuddly and lovely.

Casey waited for her to elaborate her thoughts on Nick.

“At first when I found out about him, I thought it would be weird and that maybe he would be an asshole like my father was. I know it’s stupid. I was projecting my feelings about my father on Nick without even knowing him yet.” Olivia told her. “But turns out… bastard made sure to make his and his mother’s life a living hell, too.”

Casey turned around to fully look at her, resting her arm on Olivia's chest and her chin on her hand. Her brows were knitted together in a sad expression.

“That’s terrible, Liv.”, she said, softly. “I’m glad that you were able to find each other, nonetheless.”

“Yeah… we decided to try to establish a connection. Let’s see how it works.”

“Just keep me in the loop.”

Liv smiled at her and held her closer with her free arm - the other being used as a pillow by Flo.

“I will.” she replied. “Nick’s being okay so far. Even adorable, really.”

“Well, _he is_ your brother.”, Casey teased.

Olivia clicked her tongue, pretending to be impatient with her cheesy-ness, a side smile on.

“I mean, I can see he wants this to work, too. And he liked my idea of visiting childhood spots and such to share our good memories. You know, as if we could have been there, back then.”

Casey made an _“awwwn”_ kind of face.

“That’s so freaking cute, Liv.”

“Can you stop it?”, she giggled. As always, not wanting her to stop at all.

“I mean it this time.”

“Are you saying you usually don’t?”, Olivia raised her brow at her.

“Usually you’re just hot.”

“Oh, I see.”

Olivia leaned for a kiss, forgetting about Florence - who meowed thinly in protest -, as she moved her arm up to place her hand on Casey’s face. They have been together for months now, but Olivia would never get enough of their soft, lovely kisses. Casey looked at her again, speaking with her husky voice in a little more than a whisper between them.

“Seriously, though. Let me know how things will unwrap with Nick.”

“Don’t worry.” Olivia replied, knowing her request had more to it than it seemed - she was aware Casey was worried she would get hurt by expectations or if Amaro really turns out to be an idiot. “And if all goes well, I’ll introduce you to him. I mean, his reaction was already a positive one when I said I was dating a woman.”

“You told him already just to see his reaction?”, Casey guessed.

“Yes, and I think that was a good decision.”

“And outcome”, she pointed out.

Olivia nodded with a little smile.

Casey didn’t reply, but she cuddled Liv with a smile on her - she was really glad such a discovery was already being so promising in her girlfriend’s life. More than anyone, Olivia really deserved it.


	3. Chapter 3

Olivia and Nick walked down the street, side-by-side, their shoes clicking on the same rhythm. It was his turn to share a favorite place as a kid, but since a lot of them were located in his old neighborhood, he thought it would be nice to take Olivia to a small “tour” on that Sunday afternoon.

“Here,” Amaro pointed out at a house with a red fence. “there was a brown dobermann that was actually super friendly and on my way to school I would always play a little with him. His name was Carlos.”

Olivia laughed.

It was just their second time going out in their “sibling meetings”, and not only they had shared a lot about themselves already, but the atmosphere between them was clearly getting more friendly and warmer. Of course that was only the beginning of their siblinghood, but both of them could already tell that they were venturing through the right path.

One can’t simply create a brother or sister out of nowhere. But together, they could try to carve and shape and polish that weird, unknown monolith they had discovered into something they would recognize and cherish, someday very soon.

“That’s the best dog name ever. However, I can’t ignore the fact that this is the fifth dog friend you told you had, not to mention all the stray cats.” Olivia pointed out. “That’s how you knew the neighbours, through their pets?”

“I just like them a lot, okay?”, Nick replied with humor. He pointed out a turn to their left. “And going down that street is the community library I used to bike to all the time.”

“What a good boy you were.” she said, making an impressed face.

“It was my way of getting away from the house for a while. To stay away from my father’s radar.” he told, but not wanting the conversation to go south, he added, “It was good I did that, though. There were a lot of adventure old books in there that became my favorites - _Treasure Island_ , _Robinson Crusoe, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea_ , and so on. I used to pretend to be Captain Nemo all the time. My best friend back then would play as my sidekick from the Nautilus submarine.”

“I liked to play as a pirate all the time when I was little.” Olivia said with a funny squinty face on her, as if thinking the coincidences were odd, but awesome at the same time.

“That’s pretty ironic, seeing what you ended up doing as a job.”

“I know, right? I think I should have gone for that career instead.” she joked. “It kind of explains the shirts I wear sometimes. This is being quite the revealing conversation.”

She squinted again with a side smile on her lips, half joking, half seriously considering what she had just said.

“It’s always funny when we notice these patterns that follows us since our childhood.” Nick pointed out as they turned around another street. “I guess mine is that I’ve wanted to be like the heroes I read about. Helping people out, somehow.”

Nick didn’t mention it, but she knew he also probably turned to be a cop exactly because of his experience at home, with their father. She knew that was one of the major reasons she turned to be a cop herself, with her mother’s experience both as a victim and perpetrator of abuse.

She saw her brother point out to a house with yellow walls on their right.

“Where is that house now, it used to be an empty lot we used to play in. My best friend back then was this girl… her name’s Lilly, but everyone called her ‘Bone’ because she was skinny, pale, hair so blonde it was almost white. But she’s really tough, hence the nick.” he narrated to Olivia, his eyes twinkling with a warm, tender nostalgia. “We used to ride our bikes everywhere, exploring all the neighborhood and around, my mom was always deadly worried about us alone out there.”

“I smell a puppy-crush there.”, Olivia said, with an expression that could only mean ‘ _that’s so adorable’._ Amaro laughed a little, gesturing a no with his head but cheeks turning red nonetheless.

“Nah, she was more like a sister, really. That’s where I got the idea of wanting a sister of my own I think, she’s two years older, so she kinda took responsibility over me. She was already used to that, with her younger sister Chris. She was the one who sometimes would protect me from the bullies, and she tried very hard to teach me how to baseball, but I’ve never been as good as her.”

“What happened to her?”, Olivia asked. Amaro noticed the small note of tension in her question.

“Oh, don’t worry, she’s alive and well, for what I’ve known.” he reassured. “She just moved out to Philadelphia with this dude named Ray when she was around nineteen. I haven’t heard from her since, but she always knew how to take care of herself, ever since she was a child. I think… we were all just little kids trying to fend on our own, somehow.”

“She had problems at home, too.” it wasn’t a question, Olivia easily recognizing the signs.

“Her father was out of the picture, and her mother would either lock Lilly and her little sister outside or inside, for days. My mother would take them in when they were locked out, until their mom was sober enough to either open the door, or just to return home.”

“Oh my god, that’s terrible.” her SVU side kicking in instantly, outraged. “Let me guess: Child’s Welfare didn’t take them from their mother because they were white.”

Olivia’s bitter tone was evident, just as how many times she had probably seen that happening while working with the Special Victims.

“Definitely.” Amaro said, with the same bitterness in his reply. “She went through some really rough patches. I did, too. But at the same, we tried our best not to let those things get us down, you know.”

“Yes.” Olivia said with a defeated sigh. “It's like we all had to survive in the wild by ourselves.”

He nodded in agreement.

“Lilly and I tried our best with whatever tools we had back then, and I think it worked, even if just a little.”

“You should try looking for her. I bet she would love to see you again.” Olivia suggested.

“Now that we’re saying it, I wonder why I haven’t done that before.”

“Sometimes we’re just afraid to look back because of all the bad stuff.", Olivia said, with the certainty of her own experience. "And we end up kinda forgetting about the good, too.”  
  
Nick seemed a little thoughtful for a moment.

“Yeah... That makes a lot of sense, really.”, he answered, thoughtful.

They walked together for another two blocks and he then decided to take her to the main street again and go to a local grocery store where both the owner and decoration were probably the same since the dawn of times.

The old man recognized Amaro right away.

“Nico boy!”, he said, joyful, walking around the counter to give him a hug. “It’s been what? Ten years since the last time I saw you, you dog?”

“I think it’s been fifteen, actually.”, he laughed. He turned to Olivia. “This is Mr Torres. Best ice cream around since forever. Mr Torres, this is my friend Olivia.”

Torres looked at her and squinted for a second, as if recognizing Olivia.

“Are you Hilaria’s granddaughter?”, he asked.

“Oh, no. My grandmother was called Margaret.”

“She’s not from around here. She’s a friend from work.”, Nick explained. He then turned to Olivia, “Mrs Hilaria was an old lady who lived here years ago.”

At Nick’s introduction, Mr Torres just made an “ _oh_ ” kind of expression, with hints of “ _that’s my boy_ ” in it.

The siblings’ faces went red right away. They should be expecting that kind of confusion from people, because men and women could never just be friends - or related -, apparently. However, they had silently agreed that revealing Olivia’s status as Nicolas Fiorello’s illegitimate daughter in the neighborhood Nick still had family in was probably not the best idea.

“She’s… _really_ just a friend, Mr Torres.” he corrected the man’s unsaid words. Torres didn’t seem too convinced.

“And what can I do for you, _my son_?”, he said, adding the Spanish at the end of his sentence.

“I was showing Olivia the hot spots around here, and of course we had to come over to have your famous ice cream.” Nick smiled, throwing all his charisma to stroke Mr Torres’ ego, but also to quickly change the weird subject of Olivia being more than just a friend - not only because it gave Nick the heebie-jeebies, but also because he had his wedding ring on, and the old man definitely noticed it.

It seemed to work, since Mr Torres was more than thrilled to serve them strawberry-vanilla cones, expansively explaining some of the home-made ice cream process to Olivia. During the entire time she just had an amused smile on, picking up from Nick’s also amused expression that that was the old man’s M.O. of dealing with new customers.

After that, they thanked Mr Torres - with Nick having to promise to come back again soon - and they walked down a small block to reach a local kid’s playground. Since it was a Sunday afternoon, there were still a few parents around accompanying their kids, who were happily playing in the jungle gym and swings. They sat down at one of the stone benches with their cones still in progress.

“I’m sorry, but you just had to have the ‘Mr Torres Experience’.” Amaro laughed.

“I’ll allow it. You asshole.” Olivia answered, her words mixed in with her own laugh as she had another bite of her ice cream. “It was totally worth it though, this is insanely good.”

“It is, isn’t it?”, he said, also having a little more himself.

“It almost makes me want to come back again and hear more about the art of ice cream making.” she chuckled. She then turned to Nick, a bit more serious “I just hope me coming over here won’t bring you problems...?”

“Nah, that’s alright. My mother still lives around, but she is on the east side, we are ‘safe’ here.”

“Mr Torres thought I was familiar. I hope he doesn’t remember where he had ‘seen’ my face before.”

Amaro shrugged.

“Maybe he just recognized you from the papers, or from the news.”

“Hm, yeah. There’s that.” Olivia said, wanting that to be the case, which probably was. Not wanting to be paranoid about it, she decided to brush the thought away and just enjoy the treat and her little brother’s company.

They stood there for a while, longer after their cones were already gone, just talking until nighttime poured in like ink running through water, quickly turning it black. Soon, they were the only ones there, but they weren’t afraid - the playground had lights on, and the fact they were together also made them feel safe.

Olivia just sighed in contentment, not really wanting that moment to end. Nick leaned back on the bench, also relaxing with the same feelings of his older sister. The air was cold around them, but they didn’t mind it at all. He looked at the empty playground.

“Were the swings your favorite, too?”, he asked.

“It’s basically everyone’s favorite and always disputed.”, she replied.

And then, as if their minds were connected for a moment, they turned their heads around at the same time and looked at each other with a dash of windy mischief inside their dark eyes.

“There’s no one around.” Nick pointed out.

“We are probably too old for this.”, she said.

“Speak for yourself, granny.”, he laughed.

“Respect my years older than you, Kiddo.”

“Last one there is a rotten egg?”, Nick said with a smile, staring at her for a moment. He thought Olivia was not going to do it, so he was a little startled when she just got up really quickly and ran.  
  
“Hey, that isn’t fair!”, he said, running right behind her.

“I can see who’s the real granny here.”, she laughed as she moved swiftly as rainy clouds in the sky.

Nick quickened up his pace and soon they were running side by side, playfully like little lions, their physical training really showing as they swiftly crossed the playground. No one of them could tell who got to the swings first, but it didn’t prevent them of bragging about it.

“Seems like I got first place.”, he said, breathing in and out just a little faster with the effort.

“Only in your dreams.”, she raised a brow, not breathing quickly at all, holding the chains for a moment. “I think it can hold our weight.”

“Well, it was made to hold wild children. It should be strong enough.”

He picked the swing by her side. Still with a dash of embarrassment for feeling too old for that, but at the same time not really caring about it, they sat, made the impulse and started to swing. Like everything around their siblinghood still in progress, being two adult cops swinging in a playground at night was probably the most weird experience they’ve ever had. The silliness they felt was real, but so was the genuine, simple fun.

For just a moment, all of their problems and the weight of the bad things in their past had completely disappeared, and they could pretend - even for just a second - that they really went back in time like they had wondered a few days before, at Liv's apartment.

Their laugh reverberated through the empty space of the playground, filling the night air as the trees here and there watched over them.


	4. Chapter 4

It was no news for Nick, often receiving calls from his mother. But it was _definitely_ weird to receive a call from her where she was so clearly angry - even more when he had no idea of what the hell was wrong.

He eyed his precinct and decided to go to another room to speak privately.

“ _Mom, calm down, I can’t understand a word of what you’re saying.”_ he said in Spanish. “Why are you so angry?”

“ _I need to talk to you.”,_ she answered.

“What is this even about?”

“ _You know I hate talking stuff like this on the phone.”_

“I’m on duty, mom, I can’t go right now. I will go over later. And what exactly is the _stuff like this_?”

“Alright, I'll be waiting.” Cesaria Amaro said, before mumbling a goodbye and turning off. ignoring his question.

Nick’s puzzled face was probably on during the entire day - why in the heck was she so mad? His expression changed, and his heart raced like a wild gush of wind when he realized: what if that had something to do with him taking Olivia to his old neighborhood? It couldn’t be, he made sure not to pass by his old home, or nowhere near it.

The day seemed to pass by as slow as a turtle’s race, and when it was finally the end of his shift, he called Maria to quickly tell her he was going to his mother’s before going home.

When he finally arrived, he entered the house, anxiety nearly eating him alive at that point.

“ _Mom_?”, he called.

“ _Here.”_ , she answered from the kitchen.

He barely had time to get there before his mother - who seemed to be drinking some tea, sitting by the table -, got up and went straight to him, the same raw energy he usually had when he was the one pissed off, now sparkling in her eyes.

“ _Are you out of your mind, Nico? Going around here with another woman, when you are a married man? I didn’t raise you like that, are you trying to be like the asshole of your father?”_

Amaro just stood there, getting the scolding of his life over a mistake he definitely should have seen coming.

 _Goddamnit, Mr Torres,_ he thought.

“Mom, calm down. You’ve got everything wrong.”, he said.

“ _I thought you were different from other men, Nico.”_ , she continued, not really listening just like mothers usually do when they are mad. “ _I thought you were honest. Honorable!”_

“Mom! I’m not cheating on Maria, stop saying that!” he said, louder, but only to make her listen to him. He would actually be amused if the entire situation wasn’t so delicate.

“ _Then was Mr Torres lying to me? He saw me down the street earlier today and said you came over with some strange woman two days ago! I knew it wasn’t Maria because he said she looked like Hilaria. And I knew that something was wrong, if you were around but didn’t come over!”_

Nick sighed, as the moment he was dreading so much had finally arrived.

“Mom,” Amaro started, for the third time, his voice calm and low. “listen to me. I’m not cheating on Maria, and that woman Mr Torres saw with me _is not_ my lover.”

The older lady finally seemed to be listening. She placed a hand on her forehead in a gesture of dismay.

“Then who the hell is she, _my son?”_ , she asked, finally lowering her voice and switching - mostly - back to English.

He sighed again, not really sure how to say it. He decided to just rip the band aid off.

“ _Olivia is my sister_.” he said in a little more than a whisper, being the one switching languages this time.

Cesaria’s brown eyes went wide with shock.

“What do you mean, Nico? You don’t have a sister.”

“Turns out I do, mom.”

Cesaria squinted.

“Did the bastard of your father have a child with another woman…?”. she sounded pissed, as she always did whenever she mentioned her ex-husband, but she wasn’t surprised, either.

“It’s… way more complicated than that.” Amaro started, gesturing for them to take a sit by the kitchen’s table. He then looked at her, trying to find the words. “Fiorello didn’t have an affair, mom. He… he attacked Olivia’s mother. She was born from it.”

Cesaria’s anger in her eyes instantly melted into shock as she covered her mouth with her hand.

“ _Are you sure?”_

“ _Yes, mom. Olivia was the one who found me, a while ago. She’s also a cop.”_ , he explained, switching back to Spanish to make it easier. _“She ran her own DNA through the system, trying to find out if her father left other victims. But she found me instead, my DNA is registered. We are a match... on our father’s side.”_

“ _That poor woman…! And this poor child... oh my God._ ”, Cesaria said, visibly shaken.

Amaro took his phone from his pocket and made a quick search - thanks to the SVU, Olivia’s face wasn’t one hard to find online. He turned it around to show it to his mother.

“The girl from the clip!”, she instantly recognized. “It’s her. Isn’t it?”

“Yes. Somehow, Fiorello kept track of Olivia’s mother, Serena. And somehow, he knew about Liv all along.”

Mrs Amaro just sat there in silence, looking at his son’s half-sister picture as she tried to digest all the information she had just received. She then looked at him, as if remembering something.

“You’ve always said you wanted a sister…!”

“I know.” he replied, leaning back against his chair. “I am aware it’s just because of Lilly, she was like a sister to me and you practically raised her and her little sister, too. I know it’s just a coincidence but it’s still… really weird.”

“More like destiny.”, Cesaria said. “You said she found you, _my son._ ”

“She did.”

“How is she like?”

Nick was silent for a moment, thinking.

“We’ve met a couple of times... To talk, to know each other. She’s really nice. And a good person.”

There was a pause between them.

“I’d like to meet her, too.”, Cesaria said.

He frowned a little.

“Are you sure, mom? She is Fiorello’s daughter. You don’t have to do this.”

“And that’s on the _asshole_ of your father, Nico. This poor girl, she has nothing to do with it.” she said, looking at her son with eyes filled with concern, but also compassion. “And what about her mother?”

Nick hesitated a little before explaining what happened to Serena Benson, after she crossed paths with Nicolas Fiorello almost forty years before.

“That bastard wasn’t satisfied with being a jerk to me. He had to be a jerk to some other poor woman.”, she replied, outraged. “And to this girl, too. Imagine, growing up knowing your father did something like that.”  

Nick sighed. He didn’t know what his father had done to Serena Benson when he was growing up, but he did now and it wasn’t any better, really. He held his mother’s hand for a moment before making his decision.  


* * *

  
Among the things Olivia was expecting to do that night was to get some of her work done and have Casey over to have dinner together. What she was not expecting for that night was to receive a call from Nick, where he asked if she could go to the address he gave her. He said it was important, and it had to do with his mother, that he had to tell Mrs Amaro about her existence.

At first, she was going to say no, but her usually stormy, inner voice was telling her that she should actually ignore her first instincts and just go.

In their sibling meetings, Olivia and Nick wouldn’t speak a lot of Nicolas Fiorello, so maybe that was an opportunity to know more about him - and of course, more about Nick, too. The idea of meeting his mother also intrigued her, and it was with that final thought that she broke the moment of silence between her and her brother on the phone to accept his invitation.

Half an hour later, she knocked at the door, and Nick was the one to open it. He didn’t really say anything, just gesturing her to come in and follow him to the kitchen.

When she got there, Mrs Amaro stood up from the chair she was sitting on, looking at her with a mix of surprise and compassion in her big, dark eyes. She was a very beautiful lady, with short, dark, wavy hair and a willowy figure.

It was the first time someone ever saw them together with the knowledge that they were siblings. That could be considered bias, but to Cesaria Amaro their connection was as clear as day when Olivia stepped in the kitchen, right behind Nick.

What she noticed right away was their similar way of walking. It was even strange to look at, almost as if they were in some kind of sync. When Olivia stopped and stood still, looking at her with uncertainty in those familiar stormy, brown eyes, Cesaria noticed how she would hold her right fist in her left hand - the same way her Nico would do when he was nervous or focused. She noticed how she tilted her head to the side, half confused, half waiting for her reaction, just like her son.

 

 

Olivia Benson looked like Nicolas Fiorello as if she was a mirrored image of him - but so did her Nico, and that’s what she focused on. She stepped forward and reached out, offering her hand to Olivia, who took it and greeted her in return.

“I’m Nico’s mother, Cesaria Amaro. He.. just told me about you.”

“My name’s Olivia Benson. I, hm… I don’t really know what to say, other that I’m sorry…  about the circumstances.”

“You don’t have anything to be sorry about, _my child.”_ she said, adding the term of endearment in Spanish. “As I said to Nico, you have nothing to do with anything the bastard of my ex-husband did. Please, have a sit.”

Olivia smiled a little at her in a shy manner, thankful for her words. She sat down as Nick went to the sink and started to make some more tea.

“Please, tell me about you, Olivia.”, Cesaria said, and as she listened to his son’s sister, Nick came back with mugs and served them the tea he had just made. It was an odd conversation, but nothing Olivia couldn’t handle. After she was done, it was Olivia’s turn to make questions.

“I’d like to know more about you, too. And also about Nicolas Fiorello, Mrs Amaro...?”

She was being vague on purpose, because she wanted to know about anything that Mrs Amaro would feel like telling her. Meanwhile, Nick just silently watched the conversation from his seat next to Olivia.

“Do you mind if I smoke?” Cesaria asked.

“Oh, not at all.” Olivia answered.

“He wasn’t a bad man, you know.”, Mrs Amaro started, as she pulled a cigarette pack and an ashtray from the corner of the table and picked one out. “They never are are, at first. We’ve met at the end of ‘71, I used to work in an open market, selling fruits and vegetables. That’s how we met, he would often buy them from me to distribute them to schools. We fell in love and started a relationship soon after that. We married in ‘73.”

Cesaria paused, holding in the smoke for a while before letting it out.

“Nico here was born in ‘74. Nicolas was a good father at first, but after Nico got a little older, that’s when he started to be an abusive _son of a bitch_ to me, and then to him.” she said, pointing out to her son. “I was only able to kick him out of here when Nico was almost fifteen years old.”

“Better late than never.” Olivia added, her detective side kicking in immediately. “I’m glad you were able to do this. I know that is never an easy thing to do, even if necessary.”

“Yes, _my child._ It wasn’t easy.” Cesaria said. “But I was finally able to do it, and changed my name and Nico’s back to my maiden name. In ‘96 the bastard finally kicked the bucket. Heart attack. More like _divine punishment.”_

Olivia nodded in agreement, not really knowing what to say.

“When were you born?”, Cesaria asked.

“February, 1968.”

Mrs Amaro clenched her jaw for a moment, seeing Nicolas Sir had been a sick scumbag all along, even before they had met. Her expression then turned softer when she looked at Olivia again.

“I’m really sorry about your mother.”

“Me too.”, Olivia replied, sadness in her voice. She watched as Cesaria put out the cigarette on the ashtray nearby, her expression looking like she was thinking of what she was going to say next.

“You see… you came to this world under sad circumstances, _my child,_ but it doesn’t mean it always have to be like that. I’m glad you found my son, and I can see Nico’s happy to finally have the sister he always wanted.” she pointed towards her son with a nod, a soft smile on her lips. “You may not be my blood, but you are my son’s. That’s all that matters. You’ll always be welcome in this house.”

The detective felt her eyes burn with tears, and before she could even make the effort to hold her storm in, it was already running down her cheeks. Nick put his hand on Olivia’s shoulder and squeezed it gently, as they always seemed to do to comfort one another so far. He was not really behind in his emotion, taken aback but mostly extremely touched by his mother’s reaction about Olivia.

“Thank you, Mrs Amaro.”

The older lady laid her hands on the table, palms turned up as an inviting gesture to Olivia. The detective held her hands.

“Please. Call me Cesaria.”, she replied with a summer breeze smile.


	5. Chapter 5

Meeting Nick's mother felt like getting rid of a horse Olivia didn't even know she was dragging around all along, and with it, an unfair feeling of guit also emerged inside her - of course she couldn't possibly have anything to do with the way she came to be, and that she had no control over how her father had treated his family when he was still alive, but meeting Cesaria made it feel as if she could right that wrong, in a way not even she quite understood yet.

She thought it had to do with Mrs Amaro’s acceptance of her, and she wanted to retribute her kindness, somehow. But it also had to do with that feeling that was born within Olivia's tempestuous heart in the very moment her brother first confronted her a month before, in her apartment. That feeling that had felt so foreign and undeciphered to her so far now finally had a recognizable shape and name: it was the sense of belonging. To something, to someone - in a very different way she had felt with Casey when they started dating.

Casey was pretty much her best friend, and most favorite person in the world. But her sun-like girlfriend would never know how it was like to be Fiorello’s child, and how it was to suddnely discover the existence of a brother, who had been a missing piece in her heart Olivia had never even known of, either.

Still chasing their siblinghood together, Liv was having her brother over to watch some of their favorite shows and cartoons from back in the day, and eating the snacks they liked the most, like a strange revival of something that never was. When Nick returned from the kitchen with more cookies, he placed the plate on the coffee table and sat on the floor against the sofa. He leaned his head back and rested it on Olivia's leg, stretched out on the sofa as she half-laid there. Instead of resuming the show they were watching, he decided to ask something that had been floating in his mind probably since the first time they had met.

“Liv?”

“Hm?”

“Do you think we have other siblings… out there?”, he asked, dark eyes meeting hers, a mix of uncertainty and fear plaguing his voice. Olivia looked back at him with a winter storm in her stomach, his fear as contagious as if it was indeed a disease.

“I only found you in the system.”, she replied. She knew what he would say next because that’s what she also had in mind since that day she had read only his name as a match on her DNA results.

“What if they aren't there? What if they don't have any other kind of record?”

His older sister's silence that followed his questions was enough of an answer to let him know what was going through her mind and his heart froze just like hers in his uncertainty, cold winds blowing under his bones. Her silence last for what seemed an eternity before she spoke again.

“Fiorello made other victims other than my mom. Other two women. But none of them had kids that would fit the window of time after their attacks.” and then as if also guessing his thoughts, she added. “I double-checked it.”

Still leaning his head against her leg, Nick sighed deeply, still concerned but slightly relieved by her answer.

“I don't think we'll ever really know.” he said. “Maybe that's for the best, I don't know what I'd do if we had other siblings running around out there...”

“I really hope we don't…” Olivia said, her sentence actually meaning _the more siblings we have, the more victims our father made._ She placed a hand on his shoulder. “However... I’m glad I have you, Kiddo.”

Nick looked at her again, a tender smile on his lips.

“Can’t say I’m glad about the circumstances, but… it’s good that somehow, something positive came out of it.”, he said carefully, bittersweetness imbued in his words.

Her smile reflected that sentiment when she replied.

“Can’t change the past, can’t change what I am. It is what it is.”, she said, then adding. “I’ve recently learned that.”

He reached for her hand on his shoulder and squeezed it tenderly in that way that was so common between them already, and when their eyes met again, they had no idea of what the future laid for them on the years to come.

Olivia had no idea that her brother will be there by her side when Calvin Arliss will be given to her and when he will be too soon taken away, leaving a hole in her spirit that will be bigger than she would ever want to admit; she had no idea yet she will be there to see Nick’s teary, blissful smile when he hold her niece Zara for the first time, and her brother had no idea that he will see the same expression on her when he pass his baby-girl to Liv's arms, the certainty that that child will be connected to her forever in a way she never thought would be possible, in a brand-new kind of family link.

Nick had no idea he will have to team up with Casey to be there for Liv when Elliot Stabler leaves the picture, leaving her so destroyed not even she would realize until much, much later all the damage that separation will cause; and Olivia had no idea yet that Nick will bend some rules to join the SVU in order to help her out, and at least try to fill that void that event will leave on her.

He also didn’t know yet she will be the one to find and bring his old friend Lilly back into his life, a reunion that will be so emotional to them Olivia will never forget the happiness in her younger brother’s eyes. Finding out later that Lilly had a cat also named Olivia would just add another layer of strange coincidences that embraced Liv’s and Nick’s siblinghood since the very moment they met.

She still didn’t know she will be there for Nick to watch his back, and he didn’t know either that he wouldn’t think twice to jump in to defend her like a threatened animal whenever she needs him - and whenever she let herself be vulnerable for that, which won't happen very often, as he will also find out.

They will stand together, side by side, so different from each other and yet so hauntingly identical people will stare at them for a second or two more than it's considered polite whenever they walk in a room with the same pace and step, whenever they tilt their heads sideways in concentration, whenever they chase after suspects, fearless and determined, powerful like rainstorm and wild winds combined.

They will soon find out about their mutual fear of a (supposed) violence inherited from their father, running feral in their blood like the DNA codes for their dark eyes or lion-golden skin; like their same contained anger, their almost royal pride and headstrongness. And just like their vices were just the same, so were their virtues - especially when it comes to compassion and protecting someone they loved, and it's exactly that same instinct that will roar inside Nick a few times throughout the years to come, in very specific occasions.

The first time will be when his sister returns from the undercover job in a prison, a year or so from where they were now.

The second time, the worst of them all, will be around six years in the future, when Olivia will inevitably be taken away by William Lewis. Seeing her afterwards, so helpless, so beaten and starved she will be barely recognizable will haunt his nightmares as long as he lives. The fear of the loss and the fear during her ordeal and disappearence, and the fear his older sister wouldn’t support this experience later will be constants in his life - he will never not be grateful that she will stand her ground and fight back ruthlessly, not only against Lewis, but against his legacy on her that will heal from her torn skin and broken bones, but never from her mind.

Nick will also see how not only of tragedies their siblinghood will gain strength from, and he will be there to witness when his family receives a new member when Noah arrives in Olivia’s life, lost and shelterless like a newborn kitten, but instantly stealing his sister’s and her wife's heart as their son they had no idea already existed. Noah’s adoption by both Liv and Casey will be the one and only option that ever was, and Cesaria Amaro will be over the moon to be the grandma not only for Zara, but also for the little baby boy. Visits and meals at Mrs Amaro's will be even more frequent after that.

Nick will be over the moon himself, and moved beyond words when he finally realize his little Zara will have a cousin that will be like a baby brother to her. That strange repetition in the great scheme of things will almost be a way of the universe to put things right this time - his own older sister and himself didn’t have the opportunity to share a childhood together, but their children will, in a near future when both of them came to be. Little Noah will share Liv’s tragic birth circumstances, but opposite to her, Noah will again be a cosmic coincidence that seems to be correcting the errors of the past and his life will be much, much different from Olivia’s life with Serena Benson.

There was no way they could know any of that, yet. They just stood there, sitting in Olivia’s living room, looking at each other with dark eyes full of wind storms and dark clouds, the latest bittersweet words that were exchanged still echoing between them.

However, they were smiling, as if they could sense the best was yet to come.

There was no way to know the future, but it was certain like their shared DNA that they would always have each other, from that moment on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I mentioned, this fic was inspired by the sudden realization that Amaro acted much more like a brother to Liv than freaking Simon - I was pissed because Olivia deserves so much more than a brother that literally drops out the face of the earth for five years and only returns to her to ask for (legal) help, only to disappear 5ever after that. But at the same time, I was thrilled by the idea of Amaro taking over that place, because the relationship between Liv and him is really precious. 
> 
> I've also already mentioned it in the notes of "Family Matters", but I've been a fan of Danny Pino since his Cold Case days, years before Amaro even joined SVU. That's why I just had to make that small Cold Case parallel too, with Lilly Rush being Amaro's little childhood friend (and which canonically has an orange, one-eyed cat named Olivia, haha. Maybe that was a reference). 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed the story, and thanks a lot for reading! <3


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